My days are full of lists.
Today the list looked like this:
-write Ethan about UPS contract, shipment details, prices, customs, etc.
-write Nina and Dimitri list of questions about Kenya
-write Dr Sobel regarding the eternal period. I do believe I will soon reach the status of the woman in the bible with the issue of blood. tmi- i know.
-check the weather for the week. (pray that the humidity will end)
-plan mummy day for the week
-write shelley prosch on what the correct amount of time should be for a layover from africa. is 90 minutes okay? can you make the next flight and go through customs?
-write beni johnson tell her that her message on "wakey, wakey" made you weep and feel like something in you that had been sleeping for a long time, yawned and awoke.
-buy kidco peapod
-go to target
I did all of these things except the peapod. Just as I was about to click 'buy', I thought I'd check craigslist to see if anyone had posted one since this morning. They had. So now I await the moment she returns my email. BTW: a peapod is a small, portable, 4.5 pound, bed with light mattress and blanket for infants and toddlers. It insulates them from the ground, protects them from bugs and insects, and is breathable and perfect for travel. Since we don't know about a crib in Kenya yet, this will be my handsome son's bed.
Which brings me to the next part of my list agony: Some things I am having a horrible time finding answers to.
How cold is it at night inside apartments? Do I need to bring long sleeved pjs, or is a onesie in a sleep sac fine? Will he need blankets? Is a crib mattress the same size in the USA as in Kenya- will sheets here fit sheets there? Can I even get a good crib in Nairobi? Should I buy one and ship it there? Will the mattress be safe or be filled with harmful toxic chemicals? Will everything we buy there be filled with toxic chemicals? LOL.
My brain is a racing ball of moosh.
What things do we need? What things don't we need? Should we fly after Christmas or before? Should we send a pallet of stuff now or later? Should we go to the wedding when we arrive or not?
And that doesn't even begin to address the larger swirls. They go something like this:
Will we find people there who 'get' us? Will I find a church that I can feel safe with son and husband at- even when husband is gone? Will I feel comfortable driving alone with son in city? Is the new cable (yeah what's up dark ages- TIA Dicaprio, TIA) provide fast enough internet to skype my sister and mother and father, who I already miss?! And did I mention I have to talk to my sister?! Often?!!!! Will we have enough money to surive? Will his bosses have to eat their words within a month because we weren't given Mozungo (white people) rates and actually can't survive on their piddles? Should we give son vaccines there? Should we give him the chicken pox vaccine or the MMR vaccine or the flu shot before we go? Or even, EVER?! Will I be able to find things to cook with, or will I feel like a failure to cook? and will son want to eat anything- his current favorite food at 13 months is PIZZA. ?!! Is Nairobi at all like Joburg or like Maputo? Is it more like Accra? When should we start trying for another child? Am I okay with having a baby in Nairobi- would I survive? (never mind - millions of women have survived fine having babies there) How can I make a decision like that when I've never even been there?
The moosh and swirl being to chomp on my insides. People ask me if I've started packing yet.
If someone were to ask me that right now, right at this very second, I would blankly stare back at them, and respond with something like, "Today I bought a giant size bottle of hand sanitizer". And to me, that would be progress. It's the baby steps people!
